Cartridge wad and method of making the same



Patented Mar. 16, 1926.

ALFONS G. SCHUBICHT AND GEORGE '1.

WESTERN CARTRIDGE COMPANY, OF DELAWARE.

WRIGHT, OF ALTON, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOBS TO EAST ALTON, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF CARTRIDGE WAD AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME.

No Drawing.

zens of the United States, and residing at Alton. county of Madison, Illinois, have invented the new and useful Improvement in Cartridge WVads and Methods of Making the Same, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to composite articles, and more particularly cartridge wads or plugs, and to a process of making the same. The objects and characteristic features will more fully appear from the detailed description and are particularly set out in the. claims.

The wad forming the subjectmatter of this invention comprises a mixture of a bindable material and a binder-and portions of this mixture are compressed to form individual wads. These wads may be of any suitable shape, a number of shapes being disclosed in application Serial Number 654,692, filed July 30, 1923, in which the wads are generally of dished form, that is, the faces thereof are dished or recessed so as toprovide a web surrounded by a rim of substantial thickness. A satisfactory form of wad is one whose cross section taken diametrically is that of an I. "However, the wad may be made of any suitable cross section.

In accordance with this invention, the hindable material is preferably of a cellular organic type, such as ground cork in the form known to the trade as cork flour, although cork of any other form 'may be used. Moreover other materials may be used, such as saw-dust or wood-meal.

A binding material found especially suitable is polymerized oil and for this particular purpose,polymerized China-wood oil has been found particularly useful. The preparation of the oil will be hereinafter more fully described and it may be here noted that a suitable drier is used, one adapted for this particular purpose being a metallic drier containing about 12% of lead or manganese oxide; thus lead resinate prepared by fusing together 7 0 parts of resin and 30 parts of litharge forms a highly satisfactory drier for accelerating the final curing.

The proportion of materials used will vary, depending upon the physicalproper- Application filed February 25, 1924. Serial No. 695,098.

ties desired in the finished wads. If it is (lQSlIECl to have a soft, flexible wad, the percentage of cork should be greater than that of oil, while for very hard, tough wads, the percentage of oil and cork should be about equal. Best results are" obtained with from 40 to 50% of polymerized China-wood Oll and from 60 to 50% of cork flour; these percentages and relative proportions may, however, be varied within limits.

The process embodying this invention comprises, generally stated, the following steps, namely: the preparation of the oil; the mixing of the oil and the cork and the disintegration of the mixture; the formation of portions of the mixture to form individual wads; and the curing ofthe formed wads. This will now be more fully described.

Generally stated the oil is prepared by heating the same at a temperature and for a period sufficient to polymerize the same, or more specifically stated at a temperature and for a period sufficient to form a jelly, and quenching the same. Where Chinawood oil is used, adefinite quantity of the oil has added thereto about 4.5% of a metallic drier as indicated above, and this mixture of oil and drier is then heated to a temperature of about 450 F. The heating is effected in a manner that the temperature can be closely controlled and the mass is kept agitated by stirring or otherwise; this is important since it is very essential that the temperature be closely regulated and that the mass be uniformly heated.

The time required tobring the oil to therequired temperature .is about one andonehalf hours and after being brought to the temperature, it is maintained at 450 F. until polymerization has been carried to the desired point; this requires from one to one and one-half hours. During this latter period the oil gradually thickens and becomes very sticky; the final stages of the polymerization are extremely rapid and the process must be very closely controlled at this point. The heating is carried on to a point where mass which has a slight tendency to crumble; however, it is still very sticky and if the action is allowed to proceed beyond this point, the oil becomes dry and very crumbly and loses its adhesive properties, rendering the oil solidifies to a jellylike the oil valueless for the manufacture of wads. Accordingly as soon as the proper degree of polymerization has been reached, the oil is immediately quenched by dumping it into cold water which stops the reaction at once. The properly polymerized oil is removed from the water when cooled and placed on a screen so as to allow the water to drain from it.

The prepared oil is mixed with the cork in the proper proportions and then mixed and kneaded in a kneading machine of the \Verner &- Fleiderer type, into which the full quantity of prepared oil and cork is weighed. The mixing and kneading is carried on for an extent sufficient to secure thorough incorporation of the prepared oil and cork and until no free oil is visible and until the entire mass is crumbly, yet sticky. This time is usually from one and one-half to two hours. The mixture is then screened and disintegrated, the disintegration being accomplished in any suitable manner as by passing the mixture between intermeshing pins on a plate and acylinder so that the mixture is completely disintegrated.

Individual portions of the material are now compressed to form wads. This can be accomplished in any suitable compresser, preferably of an automatic type, in which separate portions of the material are collected in a mold and compressed between plungers therein, these plungers' being of proper formation to form wads of the desired section. The material is compressed under a pressure and for a period suflicient to cause the material to flow together. For a twelve gaugewad a pressure of about 200 pounds (corresponding to 700 pounds per square inch) and maintained for about two seconds is sufiicient to secure the desired result.- This will form wads of the desired density and having the desired physical characteristics after being cured as hereinafter described.

After the wads have been formed,they are cured to secure a tough, yet flexible, elastic article. In this curing operation the polymerized oil is treated to attain a tough formation which binds the particles of cork firmly to one another so that the finished wads are of a tough homogenous mixture of cork and polymerized oil. While curing can take place on exposure to the air at ordinary temperatures, the action is extremely slow; however, this action is readily accelerated by heat; accordingly the raw formed wads are placed in an oven and heated air is caused to circulate over them. Forcomplete curing the temperature should be maintained between 200 and 220 d6g$5 F. and two and one-half hours exposure at this temperature will completely cure the wads. This curing will cause the mass to become-cemented, for whilebefore curing the mass is friable, after such curing or cementation the mass. becomes firm, tough and pliable and the product obtained is a pliable article which is particularly useful as a cartridge plug or wad.

It is obvious that although this invention is particularly applicable to cartridge wads, certain features thereof are applicable to other composite articles. It is further obvious that various changes may be made in details without departing from the spirit of this invention: it is, therefore, to be understood that this invention is not to be limited to the specific details shown and described.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. In the art of making cartridge wads, the process consisting in mixing bindable material with a binder and compressing and treating portions of the mixture to cause the materials to flow together in order to form individual wads.

2. In the art of making cartridge wads, the process consisting in compressing portions of a mixture of bindable material and a binder to form individual wads, and heating the formed wads at a cementing temperature.

In the art of making cartridge wads. the process consisting in heating an oil of the character described at a temperature and for a period suflicient to form a jelly, mixing the same with bindable material, and forming the mixture into wads.

4. In the art of making cartridge wads. the process consisting in heating an oil of the character described at a temperature and for a period sufiicient to form a jelly, mixing the same with bindable material, forming the mixture into wads, and heating the formed wads at a cementing temperature.

5. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of a polymerizable oil and a bindable material, the process of preparing the oil consisting in heating the same at a temperature and for a period sufficient to form a jelly.

6. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of a polymerizable oil and a bindable material, the process of preparing the oil consisting in heating the same at a temperature and for a period suflicient to form a jelly and quenching the same:

7. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of China wood oil and a bindable material, the process of preparing China wood oil consisting in heating the same at a temperature and for a period sufficient to form ajelly and quenching the same.

8. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of China wood oil anda bindable material, the process of preparing China wood oil consisting in heating the same at a temperatureof about i50 F. for

about two and one haIf hours and quenching the same.

9. In the art of making cartridge wads,

.the process consisting in mixing bindable material with a binder, kneading and disintegrating the mixture, and compressing portions of the mixture to form individual wads.

10. In the art of making cartridge wads, the process consisting in mixing bindable material with a binder, kneading and disintegrating the mixture, compressing portions of the mixture to form individual wads, and heating the formed wads at a cementing temperature.

11. In the art of making cartridge wads, the process consisting in mixing bindable material with a binder, forming the mixture into wads, and heating the formed wads at a cementing temperature.

12. In the art of making cartrid e wads, the process consisting in mixing indable material with a binder, and compressing portions of the mixture at a pressure and for a period sufiicient to cause the materials to flow together.

13. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of polymerized oil and bindable material, the process consisting in compressing portions of the mixture to form individual wads.

14. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of polymerized oil and bindable material, the process consisting in compressing portions of the mixture to form individual wads, and heating the formed wads at a cementing temperature.

15. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of polymerized oil and-bindable material, the process consisting in kneading and disintegrating the mixture and compression portions of the mixture to form individual wads.

16. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of polymerized oil and bindable material, the process consisting in compressing the mixture at a pressure and for a period sufficient to cause the materials to flow together.

17. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of polymerized oil and bind- 'able material, the process consisting in compressing the mixture at a pressure of about 700 pounds per square inch for about two seconds.

18. In the art of making cartridge wads from a mixture of polymerized oil and bindable material, the process consisting in compressing the mixture at a pressure and for a period sufficient to cause the materials to flow together, and heating the formed wads at a cementing temperature. I

19. A cartridge wad comprising, an indi vidually compressed mixture of bindable 

